The Târgoviște Art Museum () is situated on Calea Domnească

Târgoviște Târgoviște (, alternatively spelled ''Tîrgoviște'') is a Municipiu, city and county seat in Dâmbovița County, Romania. It is situated north-west of Bucharest, on the right bank of the Ialomița (river), Ialomița River. Târgoviște was ...

, Romaniain in close proximity to the Museum of History and the Princely Court.

Builging

The building stands as one of the significant architectural landmarks of the city from the late 19th century. Constructed between 1892 and 1894 under the stewardship of Italian entrepreneur Giovanni Baltasare Vignosa, it originally served as the seat of the

Dâmbovița County Dâmbovița County (; also spelt Dîmbovița) is a county () of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Târgoviște, the most important economic, political, administrative and cultural center of the county. It is a traditional administra ...

Prefecture. The edifice employs a classical architectural style infused with

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

influences, complemented by an interior adorned with murals. The artwork becomes increasingly ornate in the successive levels, culminating in the highly decorated "Sălii de Consiliu" (Council Room). The mural paintings adorning this central room exhibit motifs inspired by

Neoclassicism Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative arts, decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiq ...

, botanical elements, and

floral design Floral design or flower arrangement is the art of using plant material and flowers to create an eye-catching and balanced composition or display. Evidence of refined floral design is found as far back as the culture of ancient Egypt. Floral desi ...

s, strongly influenced by

Italian Baroque Italian Baroque (or ''Barocco'') is a stylistic period in Italian history and art that spanned from the late 16th century to the early 18th century. History The early 17th century marked a time of change for those of the Roman Catholic religion ...

aesthetics. Above each of the five entrances to the room, there are painted landscapes featuring landmarks of

, such as the Domnească Court and the New Metropolis, as envisioned by the Italian painter Giovanni Battista del Basso in 1894–1895. A unique depiction of the Dâmbovița County crest tops the central doorway. In the 1970s, following the relocation of the County Prefecture to a larger and more modern facility, the building served as the Adult Section of the County Library until the late 1980s. Subsequently, it underwent extensive renovations to combat advanced deterioration, culminating in its reopening to the public in 2009 as an art museum. The museum building has been designated a historical monument with the code DB-II-m-B-17238.

Collection

The exhibition at the Târgoviște Art Museum displays the heritage of Romanian art. On the ground floor, there is a selection of Romanian ancient art, predominantly characterized by religious paintings executed in various media. This includes frescoes from the Brâncovenesc period, as well as

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic, and Lutheranism, Lutheran churches. The most common subjects include Jesus, Mary, mother of ...

s dating back to the 18th century and beyond, some even from the early 19th century. The collection deviates from traditional religious artwork with the inclusion of small-scale neoclassical icons created by Gheorghe Tattarescu in the latter half of the 19th century (circa 1863–1864), marking a transition from religious to easel painting, prominently displayed on the upper floor. An example of this transition is found in the interiors illustrated by Gheorghe Tattarescu, with anonymous portraits of nobles. These portraits are characterized by schematically depicted costumes and expressive faces, evoking the tradition of votive paintings created by various church patrons. There are artworks created towards the end of the 19th century by artists such as Nicolae Grigorescu,

Sava Henția Sava Henția (1 February 1848, Sebeșel - 21 February 1904, Sebeșel) was an Austrian Empire, Imperial Austrian-born Romanian painter, decorator and illustrator. Biography He was one of fourteen surviving children of a priest. In 1862, after finis ...

George Demetrescu Mirea George Demetrescu Mirea (1852, in Câmpulung – 12 December 1934, in Bucharest) was a Romanian portrait painter, muralist and art teacher. Biography He was one of twelve children born to an Archpriest. His first art lessons were at the "Școala ...

, and Ștefan Vasilescu, marking the evolving artistic styles and changes taking place across the country. The early 20th century is represented by the early works influenced by Grigorescu's style, courtesy of Gheorghe Petrașcu, as well as academic portraits by painter Ștefan Vasilescu. Beginning in the 1920s, the exhibition showcases an important period of Romanian art: works by

Nicolae Tonitza Nicolae Tonitza (; April 13, 1886 – February 27, 1940) was a Romanian painter, Engraving, engraver, Lithography, lithographer, journalist and art critic. Drawing inspiration from Post-Impressionism and Expressionism, he had a major role in ...

depict children, portraits of high society ladies are presented in various styles by artists such as Cecilia Cuțescu-Storck, Costin Petrescu,

Theodor Pallady Theodor Pallady (; 11 April 1871 – 16 August 1956) was a Romanian painter. Biography Theodor Pallady was the son of Ioan Pallady and Maria Cantacuzino, the older sister of Romanian diplomat Neculai B. Cantacuzino. He was born in Iași, Roman ...

, or possibly Eustațiu Stoenescu. The exhibition culminates with the luminosity offered by the landscapes of Nicolae Dărăscu in Balcic before the onset of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Throughout the museum, a variety of artistic techniques are displayed, from traditional to more modern, including

tempera Tempera (), also known as egg tempera, is a permanent, fast-drying painting medium consisting of pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder medium, usually glutinous material such as egg yolk. ''Tempera'' also refers to the paintings done in ...

on wood, frescoes, pastels, and oil on various media. Each artist's distinctive colors, such as the blues and whites of Gheorghe Petrașcu, the warm grays of

, the bright yellows of

, the gray tones of Nicolae Grigorescu, the blues of Nicolae Dărăscu, and the greens of Bob Bulgaru, are present in the artworks of the permanent exhibition.

References

External links

Official site of the museum
(Romanian, English) {{DEFAULTSORT:Târgoviște Art Museum Art museums and galleries in Romania National museums of Romania Buildings and structures completed in 1971